Growing a Small Business – COVID-19 Edition

In the first week of COVID-19, what I thought was my "dream job" came to an abrupt end. I remember taking a photo during a meeting on a boat – it represented everything I thought I wanted in my career. But within days, that dream was shattered.

I was fragile, lost and now that I think of it- slightly crazy for diving into something I had no idea about. But instead of wallowing in self-pity, my partner Caleb Coffie and I decided to channel our energy into learning new skills. We learned Adobe Illustrator, laser engraving, website building, photography, and so much more.

Casual Work Day Video

This was one of my first days playing with Caleb Coffie's laser.

In October 2020, we officially launched The Coffie Cutters. Our first month was humbling – we only had 19 orders. I felt so DEFEATED but I wasn't going to let Etsy win. Every day, we focused on listing new items, taking better photos, creating new designs, and optimizing our listings.

Then came Black Friday 2020. We invested in Etsy ads and managed to reach the front page of Etsy's search results. We received so many orders that Etsy temporarily stopped including us in their search results!

None of this would have been possible without the incredible support of our family. When orders started flooding in, we knew we couldn't handle everything alone. Mom, Dad, Destiny, and Angel all stepped up to help with packaging, production, and everything else we needed to keep up with demand.

The coronavirus pandemic changed everything for millions of people around the world. For us, it was the catalyst that transformed a devastating job loss into the birth of The Coffie Cutters. This is our story of resilience, learning, and building something meaningful from the ground up during one of the most challenging times in recent history.